Deck Garden, End of the Year Assessment

 

Summer has nearly come to an end, and it is time to recap how well things went in my deck garden this year. For the most part, I consider this year to be a bit on the mediocre side. After all of my efforts, loving care, not to mention expense, I was underwhelmed by the lack of production.

My inability to grow peppers, other than jalapeños, has become quite frustrating. Year after year I plant pepper seeds, all kinds, all colors, they will reach a height of between 3 and 4 inches, and stop right there and never do a thing.

On the plus side, I got loads of tomatoes and cherry tomatoes, so much so that I was giving them away. That’s a good thing because there’s nothing more delicious than a summer tomato warm from the vine. On the downside, despite vines crawling all over the deck, I didn’t get a single cucumber. That puzzles me because generally, as with cherry tomatoes, I am giving those away.

  Another plus (and I am thrilled beyond words at this) is that the seeds I had harvested from a black heirloom tomato that Melissa’s Produce had sent me, germinated and produced! I planted this late, so I wasn’t really expecting anything, even though I got a couple of blossoms. There are two tomatoes here; one is small and obviously pecked by a bird, unfortunately. I’m keeping my fingers crossed that the other one makes it to the ripening stage. It should. Generally, I don’t have a need to pull up tomatoes until mid October, although the shorter days do impede their growth. I’m going to keep a careful watch on this, and photograph it weekly, so that I can capture the point when it begins to turn black. I’m so excited! 

The charentais melon seeds that I planted did quite well. I got 100% germination from all six of the seeds that I had harvested from an organic melon that I got from Melissa's Produce, and, like the cucumbers, those vines crawled all over the deck. Also, like the cucumbers, I didn’t get any melons… or so I thought. When I went out to pull up the vines, I got three of them pulled up, but when I pulled up the fourth, I heard a clunking sound. Upon examination, I noticed that there were six tiny melons on that vine. I cursed myself for having not been more patient. I did find another melon on one of the remaining vines, and I have been babying it ever since. I doubt, at this late stage, that it will be big enough to use, but I have been encouraged by this, and will certainly plant melons again next year.When I went out to water this morning, I saw yet another one on the way. It’s probably too late to actually turn into anything edible, but it’s exciting nonetheless. Clearly, I can grow melons. Noted for next year.Speaking of melons, this little mystery melon started growing in one of my window boxes. It’s not the same as the charentais melon because each striation is actually an indentation. This may just be a pumpkin! I have no idea where this came from. The only thing I can figure is that the neighbors have pumpkin seeds in the mixture they use to feed the birds, and one of the birds dropped it in my window box.

The scallions did well, my cash crop was jalapeños (I couldn’t give those away), the basil bolted way too soon, and I didn’t get one batch of pesto out of it. The Alstroemeria did quite well, and I am very pleased with the result of that bit of experimentation. I am going to dig it up, bring it into the house, and attempt to overwinter it. The petunias put on a very colorful fuchsia show, I’m also going to try to overwinter them; the zinnias were their usual beautiful self.

They attracted loads of hummingbirds that are always a delight to watch, as well as goldfinches that love to hang onto the branches, and painstakingly pull out the pedals, in order to get to those delicious fresh seeds. They’re so cute that I just let them. I’m already in the planning stages for next year.

What were your successes and failures this year?

I’ll see you in the spring for more garden talk.

Spicy Cheesy Beer Bread

 

Gardens. What can you do? I was telling a friend the other day that both my cucumber vines and melon vines are loaded with blossoms. I was quite proud of this until I noticed over the weekend when I was watering that they are all male.  MALE!!! I don’t have a female blossom on either of these plants. This means that for all of my watering, fertilizing, coddling, etc., I may not end up with a single cucumber or melon. Male blossoms do not produce offspring. It works the same way in humans, but I digress.

Photo credit: Missouri Botanical Garden

  On the other hand, I have a bumper crop of jalapeños, and because I do, I’m always looking for new ways in which to use them. I made shrimp boil foil packs for dinner the other day (cut the recipe in half, made two, had them two nights in a row and it was wonderful to not have to cook those two days ). They called for some sort of bread and because I used a little bit of beer in the foil packs, I thought I would use the remaining beer to make beer bread. I wanted to do something different with my beer bread recipe so decided to add more cheese, more seasoning, and jalapeños. It was fantastic! It would be a wonderful assortment with soup, stew, chili, any type of salad, or a Mexican meal. It’s easy to put together, you just stir and dump. This is a must try.

Spicy Cheesy Beer Bread

 3 c. flour

2½ T. sugar

1 T. baking powder

1 t. kosher salt

¼ t. Old Bay Seasoning

1½ c. shredded sharp cheddar cheese

1 jalapeño, minced

12 oz. beer

3 T. melted butter

GARLIC BUTTER TOPPING:

2½ T. melted butter

1 t. dried parsley

½ t. garlic powder

 Preheat oven to 350°F. Spray a 9"x5" loaf pan with PAM; set aside.

 In a large mixing bowl place flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and Old Bay; stir to combine. Fold in the shredded cheese and jalapeño. Make a little well in the center and gently pour in the beer, stirring to thoroughly combine.

Measure half of the melted butter into the bottom of the prepared loaf pan. Use a pastry brush to spread it up the sides and distribute evenly on the bottom. Transfer batter to pan, spreading it out into an even layer.

 Pour the remaining half of the melted butter over the top of the batter, brushing it around so it evenly coats the top.

Bake for 45-50 minutes, until golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center tests clean.

Whisk together garlic butter topping ingredients and pour over the top of the hot bread as soon as it comes out of the oven.

Allow bread to cool in the pan for 10 minutes, and then turn out onto a wire rack to finish cooling.

This bread does not keep well, so you’d be wise to eat it within two days. It freezes quite well, however, and makes excellent toast.

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Deck Gardening 2024: Heirloom Tomatoes from Seed

  

 Have you priced seeds recently? I was shocked when I went shopping for them this spring. The prices have doubled and, in some cases, tripled over what I paid last year. Generally speaking, I don’t plant a lot of things by seed because it takes longer to get to the harvest. But I also find that unless I want to pay top dollar for specific seeds because plants aren't readily available at local garden centers, I need to come up with a better alternative…and I have. Harvest my own!

 Case in point, these beautiful heirloom tomatoes. I love heirloom tomatoes, not just for taste, but also visual appeal, and I love that there’s a history behind them. These beautiful tomatoes pictured came from Melissa’s Produce. I used them in this salad. While I was slicing them for that salad, I pulled out some of the seeds and set them aside to dry. Two days later, I planted them, and within a week they had sprouted, and with great gusto, I might add. (I'm still kicking myself for failing to harvest seeds from the yellow tomato.).

 

I cannot tell you how happy I was to see these little tomato plants coming up in the pots on my deck. Will they reach fruition this year? Who knows, but I will certainly have a wonderful time growing them, and I will keep you posted as to what happens.

Since that time I have planted seeds from an all red heirloom tomato, as well as a charentais melon that I also got from Melissa’s Produce. All of these are organically grown, so I know the seeds are going to be free of toxins, and these are the most comfortable I feel growing and eating.

Alstroemeria update.

They are thriving! A fuchsia petunia self-seeded beneath them, so it is quite a lovely display.

  “Who plants a seed beneath the sod and waits to see believes in God.” 

-- Anonymous

Deck Gardening 2024: Compost Bins

 

First of all, I tried the countertop compost bin that is generally designed to gather up the days (or weeks, depending upon how often you cook) scraps to be dumped into a larger bin. Despite all of the favorable reviews, this did not work for me. The problem I had with this is that, over time, it starts to smell, no matter how many times you change that filter. In addition, it can also drawn gnats, and that’s disgusting, so I threw mine out.

Photo: Amazon

Deck, balcony, and patio gardeners have space at a premium, and therefore have to be careful in planning what they intend to grow. Plants can outgrow their spaces in no time, so you don’t want to overcrowd. If you have too many things in one pot, nothing is going to do well.

Your crops are also not going to do well if you repeat plant in the same pot without rotating (Yes, there is a need to rotate crops even in pots.), or if you fail to enrich the soil with each year. With this in mind, one thing that you should dedicate space for is a compost bin. These have come a long way since those big, bulky things that people used to have in their backyards, or, failing that, a compost pile. For those of us with no room for piles (and I’ll just leave that there) the next thing is a compost bin where you can turn fruit and vegetable scraps into a wonderful rich soil. I have tried a number of them with mixed results.

Photo: Amazon

I then got a small compost bin to keep in the garage. Anytime I cook I always have a garbage bowl at hand for scraps (Never, and I cannot emphasize this enough, use meat or dairy scraps.) that I put into the compost bin. The reason that I bought this particular one was that it had a spigot on the bottom for “compost tea,” i.e. the runoff, or byproduct of the compost. Rich in nutrients, it can be mixed with water and used on your plants as a fertilizer; it is wonderful stuff. The trouble is, I never got any compost tea. With this design, however, what I did get was a door that popped off, and compost that rained down onto my feet, after which, I spent the rest of the day shoveling it back into the compost bin, and scrubbing my feet. After this happened three times it occurred to me that, again, despite favorable reviews, perhaps this was not the composter of my dreams.

Photo: Amazon

The one I finally settled on, and highly recommend is this one. It has a small footprint, has a narrow rather than bulbous design, and a door that slides into a channel so that there is no way it can pop off and dump compost onto your feet. It is on the small side, so the perfect choice for a household of one or two, but perhaps not large enough for household of three or more people.

One of the best things that you can do for yourself and the planet is to compost your scraps. You can use teabags, loose tea, coffee grounds, a sprinkling of wood ash from your fireplace (if you burn untreated wood), and all of the fruit and vegetable scraps that you end up with after working in your kitchen. Turning that into black gold is an absolute wonder, and your plants will love you for it.

 GARLIC UPDATE: Harvested!

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Deck Gardening 2024: Growing Alstroemeria

 

It’s important, when you have limited space and/or a limited number of containers in which to plant, that you plan your garden carefully. Pay attention to what you use the most when you’re in your kitchen, and grow those things. Don’t allow your head to be turned by something that will take up space and that you’re not going to use. That said, I always save one large plant pot for something experimental every year. I will say that most of the time my experiments fail.

 This year, because this is one of my favorite flowers, I decided to pick up the second to last Alstroemeria that I saw on a high shelf at the local garden center. It was nearly $30, so I hesitated a good bit before I finally put it in my cart. I have long been curious as to how these grow, if I can keep it growing, and of course, the big thing is if it returns the following year because it is a perennial. My interest was in doing pink and white flowers on the deck this year with a touch of purple. The only color of Alstroemeria they had was this peach and white with a yellow center. I will let you know how things progress. Fingers crossed it thrives, and I have beautiful cut flowers all summer long. 

What would you like to experimentally grow this year?

UPDATE: Isn’t the garlic progressing nicely?

 

Deck Gardening 2024

 

What I have learned from decades of talking to gardeners is that whether you have acreage, or a single pot, every spring brings with it hope for a great harvest. Last year was one of my absolute worst. I decided that it would be a good idea to install a drip irrigation system in the container garden that I keep on my deck. Unfortunately, I didn’t have the water pressure to cover all of the pots equally, so some overflowed, and the plants rotted, others didn’t get enough water and they dried out. I won’t do that again. Having now removed all of that tubing, and gleefully tossed into the trash, I’m ready to start anew.

  One thing I’m doing differently this year than I did last is to try raised bed gardening. You don’t have to garden on the ground in order to have a raised bed, you can get a trough planter like this one to raise things up, making it much easier to deal with when it comes to watering, weeding, and harvesting. I’m quite excited about this. I’ve really just starting planting in zone 6B where I live, but I will say that I did plant potatoes on March 17 as I used to do with my dad when I was a little girl, and they are doing well, although in very early stages.Shortly after I planted the potatoes, I decided to not waste a garlic bulb that had sprouted, so I separated the cloves and planted them in my trough garden that will end up being a salsa garden if things go well this year. Take a look at them! Can you believe it?  I feared for their safety when we had two cold nights where temperature zipped into the 30s. I had to very carefully cover them up to avoid damage, but I couldn’t be happier with how well they’re growing. Yes, I know that garlic generally needs to be planted in the fall; I don’t know if this is going to be successful or not, but I love the experimentation, and so far so good.

Another thing that I decided to do is to harvest, dry, and plant seeds from organic fruits and vegetables that I buy just to see what happens.  The other day I was enjoying a Charentais melon from Melissa‘s produce, and decided to save and dry some seeds for planting. I’ve never grown melons before, so I’m very eager to see how this works out. Within a week of planting the seeds, a couple of little seedlings poked up their heads, and I couldn’t have been more excited. You wouldn’t believe how fast my heart was beating. I was reluctant to give over too much space to growing melons when I could use it for a guaranteed success like tomatoes, but a little experimentation is good for the soul.

I’m going to try to provide you with an update every month, perhaps twice a month, so you can see how things are growing.

Interestingly enough, petunias self-seeded into one of the house plants that I had moved outside, and I currently have them blooming in a pot along with a kangaroo paw fern, and a Zinnia blossoming in a dracaena pot. Considering that I did not move the dracaena outdoors during the summer, I’m wondering how the heck that zinnia seed managed to get into that pot, but isn’t that half the fun of gardening? 

See you next month with an update.

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Grow Your Own Mushrooms

 

Those of us who love growing flowers and vegetables during the summer, often struggle during the winter. The wait between growing seasons can seem in interminable.

I grow a lot of plants indoors that I find very satisfying, but there’s something extra special about growing my own food. For Christmas, number two son gave me a mushroom growing kit. If you haven’t tried one of these, they are fascinating fun. Watching them sprout and grow (something that occurs quite rapidly) is magical. Growing my own gave me a new appreciation for mushrooms. I cannot wait to harvest and sauté them.

 

They are intricate and quite beautiful when you look at them. This is a wonderful and memorable gift. If you know someone who loves to cook, grow vegetables, or both, and is hard to buy for, give this some consideration. Edible, educational, and great fun.

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Purple & Yellow Summer Salad with Lemon Vinaigrette

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One of the best things I did this year was to give over one of my window boxes on the deck to the growing of lettuce. This beautiful variety is called “Merlot.” Interestingly enough, it was not my plan to grow lettuce. I got the seeds for free as a ‘thank you’ for the purchase of other seeds, so I decided to give it a try. Now I am hooked! This is a beautiful, tender, delicate lettuce that has been a wonderful addition to my dinner table. Every evening I go out with the scissors, cut what I’d like, experiment with different colors and ingredients, and enjoy a colorful, healthy, and delicious main or side.

 

Today I decided to focus on purple and yellow in my salad, and the results are absolutely delicious. The beauty of summer is that so many diverse fresh fruits and vegetables are available. I intend to take advantage of as many as I can.

Purple & Yellow Summer Salad

with Lemon Vinaigrette

Use the following ingredients in any quantity:
Merlot Lettuce
Blueberries
Fresh corn, stripped from cob
Blue cheese
Red Onion, thinly sliced
Melissa’s Yellow Watermelon
Lemon Vinaigrette (recipe below)

 Lemon Vinaigrette

 ¼ c. fresh lemon juice

1/3 c. extra-virgin olive oil

1 t. Melissa’s minced garlic

1 t. Dijon mustard

1 t. sugar

¼ t. kosher salt

Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

 Place all ingredients into the work bowl of a mini food processor and process until emulsified. Taste for seasoning.

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Winter Solstice Garlic Planting

Yesterday was the winter solstice, and what does that mean for gardeners? It means it was the day to plant garlic. The garlic mantra is: plant on the shortest, harvest on the longest. That means, should everything go as planned, that I will be harvesting garlic on June 21.

You have to love gardening to go out in the bitter cold with an ice pick to make holes in the soil in order to plant. That’s devoted. I waited until the warmest part of the day (34° F), and I planted about 20 cloves in a 24-inch diameter pot approximately 2 inches deep. The root end is planted down with the pointed end sticking up. Garlic likes loose soil, so I made sure the soil I was hacking into had a nice mixture of perlite. We’re expecting rain and wintry weather tomorrow, so it should get a decent watering.

There are a lot of reasons for growing garlic, not just because it is so delicious, but also because there are so many health benefits:

1. It boost the immune system
2. Regulates blood sugar
3. Fresh garlic can kill E. coli and salmonella
4. Contains mood boosting vitamin B6

 If you’ve never had fresh garlic, let me tell you that it is heavenly! When you cut into it, juices run. That should give you an idea of how old that garlic you're buying at the supermarket is.

As prices at the grocery stores continue to climb, it’s more important now than ever to learn how to grow your own food. You don’t need a lot of space, just a couple of plant pots, some sacks of soil, and you can get started.

Who plants a seed beneath the sod, and waits to see, believes in God.

 

The Great GINGER Harvest

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If you don’t follow me on Instagram, then you may not be aware that the Great Ginger Harvest took place last weekend. I probably could have let it go a little longer -- ginger is to be harvested when the leaves turn yellow -- but cold weather was moving in, and I still wanted to be able to work the soil.

I had plenty of roots, and, as you can see, they grow laterally, each section sending up its own shoot. Had I started it earlier, the tubers would have been much bigger. Considering that I only planted one little sprout, I was plenty pleased with the outcome.

I didn’t get a lot of them, but what I did get was incredibly juicy and flavorful. If you have ever worked with ginger, then you know it can be woody, stringy, and difficult to cut; this was not. It chopped up beautifully, juices ran, and the fragrance was positively intoxicating – a difficult to describe combination of citrus and spice that was nearly addictive.

This is on my list to grow next year, and if you like using fresh ginger in dishes as much as I do, give it a try. The plant is not unattractive, and takes well to growing in a large container.

Deck Garden September Wrap-Up

It’s September (Can you believe it?), so it is time for a deck garden wrap-up. It has been a garden friendly summer. For the most part temperatures have been moderate, rain was plentiful early on, and everything grew like mad. You know that your garden has been a success when neighbors become wild-eyed upon seeing you; faint strains of “no more tomatoes” hang in the air, as they turn on their heels and flee. I think half the neighborhood is suffering from acid re-flux as a direct result of consuming too many tomatoes.

I never thought I would say this, but I am sick of tomatoes, tired of cutting up peppers for the freezer much less eating them, most sorrowful at all of the green beans that went bad because one can only consume so many, and wishing I had a lot more flowers. 

The Cathedral Bells climbed everywhere, teasing me all summer, but didn’t bloom until this morning when I was greeted with the most amazing purple flower. Here’s hoping something will become of the small bird sitting out in the plant so that I can reap rewards for all of my hard work and dedication. This variety is Cobea Scandens, and those seeds can be found here.

The herbs did marvelously, and I did well, I think, growing nothing more than mint (in its own pot), and a big pot of basil, chives, and parsley. With few exceptions, I didn’t find I needed much more. Next year I will add lemon balm, because I do like that in a nice cold brew tea. Note made.

I learn things every year when I garden, but I think the most important lesson learned this year was to carefully read seed packets. I was so charmed by the thought of growing gourds, that it never occurred to me to CAREFULLY read the packet. Had I done so, I would have discovered that I’d purchased seeds for miniature gourds only destined to be 2 inches long. They are adorable, but not exactly what I was hoping for.

Speaking of which, once I harvested the gourds and pulled up the vines, the ruffled pink morning glories that I had forgotten I’d planted (in the hopes of them entwining themselves in a beautiful gourd/flower display) began to grow and bloom. I absolutely love this variety, and will definitely grow them next year. Many people have inquired about this variety. These are Split Second Morning Glory, the seeds can be found here.

Another thing that I learned is that no way do I need as many peppers and tomatoes as I grew. The same goes for the cherry tomatoes. Not that I’m complaining, they provided me with a lot of wonderful, crunchy, flavorful little fruit, but enough is enough. My refrigerator is full of bowls of them, and I just can’t take it anymore. The jury is still out on the cucumbers.

I am letting the big boy tomatoes continue — they look quite lush —but long ago pulled down their trellises, so, while they are vining all over the place, they are providing me with wonderful tomatoes, that I am turning into the best ever marinara sauce.

The ginger is still doing well, and will go into October. 

My notes for next year are this; grow fewer vegetables and more flowers. I didn’t need the 50 jalapeños that I harvested in one week. While I love the peppers, one plant will do, if that, and I’m not going to grow jalapeños. They are easy to grow, and quite prolific, but next year that pot is going to hold either flowers or lemon balm. One of my great joys this season has been all of the butterflies and hummingbirds that have visited.

Next year I hope to have more. I don’t mind planting zinnias, solely for the enjoyment of the goldfinches, who holds onto their strong systems, plucking each petal from every flower head, one at a time, in order to get to the fresh seeds. It’s adorable.

What did your garden do? And what will you do differently next year?

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